If you have done any competitive trail running, the UTMB series of races has probably been on your radar for a long time. You have watched it grow, and like me, have probably acquired qualification points enough to enter one or more of the races. The alpine resort of Chamonix in France has become a “mecca” of trail running in a very short passage of time. It has only been 2 decades since the first edition in 2003. And with this growth has come hype, massive commercial involvement and controversy. The inside story behind this process has now been written, and whatever your view of the UTMB “circus”, if you race on the trails, you will want to read this book. It might change your mind on a few things. It will certainly lead to greater understanding.
Doug Mayer is uniquely qualified to “lift the lid” on the history and ethos of UTMB for the English speaking world, and has compiled a list of fully up to date interviews with elite runners who are prepared to speak frankly about the current explosion of commercialism surrounding the events and the problems allied with the global expansion of the UTMB World. He’s been around this scene for a long time, has run the races himself and runs a trail running experience and guiding business in Chamonix. He’s also written another outstanding book on alpine running and has penned numerous articles for Trailrunner magazine.
As far as most grassroots competitive runners are concerned, two big developments stand out as game changers in that two decades. The first is Parkrun, which brought free, inclusive competitive running every Saturday morning to whomever felt like turning up for a measured 5km. The second is the explosion in, mainly commercially run, trail races, most “off the beaten track” and over distances longer than a marathon. The growth curve of participation in this hitherto niche activity is not far off exponential. Throughout this extraordinary two decades, much in the way a road runner looks to the London or New York City Marathon as a reference point and for many an aspiration to toe the line one day, for the trail runner, it has always been the Ultra Trail de Mont Blanc, UTMB, that demands that same attention. The five boroughs of the Big Apple on foot or Greenwich to Buckingham Palace is replaced by the preposterous idea of a full lap, through 3 countries, of the highest mountain massif in the Alps. Moreover, the series of UTMB races have come to dominate the horizon by creating a “system” which has become highly controversial in its impact on grassroots runners. In seeking to expand the brand globally, and bring many more local races into their system, the “free spirit” of trail and ultra-distance appears uniquely threatened somehow. Doug doesn’t shy from these issues, and, in having access to the Poletti family in Chamonix and other major local “players, he has deftly negotiated the line between fan and critic. I myself have been a follower of the scene for around a decade, I speak French and even lived for 7 years just up the autoroute in Geneva. I understand what a difference, positive and negative, the explosion of mountain trail running means in the Chamonix Valley, as ski seasons shorten and glaciers recede.
This book is full of insights into the process of how the races came about, who made them happen in the first place two decades ago, how that has all changed, and how and why they have remained in the grip of one local family. What it doesn’t, and, perhaps, can’t do is see into the future. It also is not written from the standpoint of a grass roots competitor like myself, who might only ever get one shot at a UTMB race, but Doug has done a fair job of trying to appreciate both the lure and the pitfalls. These days I am probably not quite fool enough to invest fortunes in trying to play this game, and having once been captivated, I now look at the UTMB world with some horror: the rampant commercialism, the implied environmental disaster of their global circus, the implicit sexism and ageism in their qualification system and the lack of a rigorous and transparent drug testing programme. Much like Premier League Football in the UK, I enjoy the spectacle, but I know what I am looking at. Much needs to change. But then again, much has since 2003, a lot of it for the better. Hopefully a read of Doug’s excellent book will allow others to know more about what lies beneath as well, and then make their choices.
I did think at first that the book would only appeal to runners, but now I feel that in the longer term it will get a wider readership, particularly amongst those who are interested in other mountain sports, particularly in the alpine region. As I said earlier it is so well written and put together, and above all timely, that I would recommend it more generally. There are many great insights into what happens when niche sports grow and inevitably become more commercialised, but more than that, the story of how a small group of Chamoniards have been able to stay the course throughout this growth is a fascinating one.
The book can be bought direct from the publisher Helvitiq here:
(https://hello.helvetiq.com/the-race-that-changed-running)
Doug's Run the Alps website blog page on the book.
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"Madame UTMB" - Catherine Poletti |
